And yeah, we probably should rename the thread. Neither side is trying to get a deal done and it shows.

The legal challenges are interesting though, with the Montreal players hiring a lawyer to challenge the legality of a lockout under Quebec's labour laws. Apparently the Alberta based players did the same then withdrew the challenge.

The NFLPA did the same thing for the NFL Labor Lockout. Certainly, if the Players' Association disbands, there's a valid labor law claim in the United States as well. The NHL might be in a precarious position because they have to deal with two countries' labor laws.

That being said, lawsuits aren't going to save Hockey. They still need to work something out.

Bettman and Daly need to go, unfortunately both of which are beloved by the orders.

I again give credit to the players in this battle of millionaires and billionaires. They came out and said "Heck, we'll play without a deal", where the owners and NHL brass have played the lockout card for weeks now.

I again give credit to the players in this battle of millionaires and billionaires. They came out and said "Heck, we'll play without a deal", where the owners and NHL brass have played the lockout card for weeks now.

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The case for the players is pretty simple:

A) After the '04 - '05 season was canceled and both sides began talking again in the summer of 2005, Bob Goodenow convinced the union to roll over and take the CBA that the NHL had written, up to and including the immediate 24 percent salary rollback across the board. It was an agreement written by the owners, designed to be in the owners' favor. They got everything they wanted.

B) In the intervening years, bolstered by dramatic increases in revenue, ownership begins spending more and more, including exploiting loopholes in the CBA to sign players to monster contracts once again.

C) Now pleading poverty despite constantly surging revenues, NHL owners demand that the union agree to significant concessions in a new CBA, including another massive salary rollback and a significant drop in share of hockey-related revenue. These demands are made because owners have been spending beyond their means.

Essentially, the whole thing boils down to the owners demanding that the NHLPA save them from themselves, and Don Fehr (who, unlike Goodenow, does not have a fatal case of having his head stuck up his ass) saying, "Fuck that, we're happy to continue playing under the deal that you yourselves wrote and specifically designed to be in your favor. It's not our fault that a few of you can't keep your dicks in your pants."

Fuck the NHL, fuck Bettman, fuck Daly, and fuck the owners, all of whom are willing to blow up the league that has just regained some measure of legitimacy after the last labor struggle, just because they can't keep themselves from opening their checkbooks.

So the PR stunts have begun: TSN had a report on Sportscentre of Vancouver players practicing wearing their Canucks practice jerseys inside out (can't find a link anywhere). Kevin Bieksa comes out saying how they are no longer employed by the Canucks, so they aren't going to wear their uniforms.

Seriously?

Grow up! Find somewhere low key to skate, pick up one of those nondescript practice uniforms from a sporting good store and tell the media "We want to be in shape for when the season starts" and be done.

Well, we've already lost the preseason, and now reports are coming out that after three days of talks over the weekend during which no core issues (one NHLPA source says that the league has followed through on its threat to actually take things off the table from its last formal offer) but rather only peripheral sideshow issues like drug testing were addressed, no further talks are scheduled and the first few weeks of the regular season will be canceled soon.

These are the kinds of players I would feel bad for, if I feel bad for anyone between the two teams. This is not like a superstar who can go and play somewhere else. These guys have to sit at home and wonder when they'll have a job. That I can relate to.

Lets hope they come to these senses and take this offer, they've already burned the fans enough.

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It can't be repeated enough -- the owners got everything they wanted in the last CBA, and after it was instituted, the league saw years of growth. Now, all of a sudden, it wasn't good enough and they dug in. Okay, so they've made some mild concessions with this new offer, but it's still a bad one for the players. I mean, yeah, the NHL made some movement from its last deadline proposal, but it only looks decent because it's a step up from a shit sandwich on a stick.

Say your boss comes up to you and says, "Great news! We are not going to cut your salary like we planned! ... But you have to move your office into that smelly supply closet, and you have to use an outhouse instead of a bathroom, oh, and you can't keep your desk, you have to hold your laptop in your arms all day. But it's a great deal for you!"

At the end of the day, the NHL's offer is still Bettman and Co. trying to make everyone forget that the league is experiencing record revenues, and instead putting the blame for any perceived issues on the players' backs, instead of cockmongers like Daryl Katz. Even if a deal goes from ten kicks in the dick two kicks in the dick ... you're still being asked to be kicked in the dick.

And all November games are now canceled. Cancellation of the Winter Classic and the All-Star Game is expected to be announced on Monday.

To put this in perspective, the NHL has lost an estimated $700 million in revenue because assholes like Jeremy Jacobs are more preoccupied with greed and breaking the union, rather than actually making a fair deal. "What's that? Actually honor the contracts we signed over the summer? Oh, you silly players. "